John Shearer: Some More Changes Coming To The UTK Campus

  • Tuesday, April 28, 2015
  • John Shearer
University of Tennessee alumni and fans from the Chattanooga area who remember fondly such campus landmarks as the University Center, the Hill below Ayres Hall and the Torchbearer statue will notice changes to all three icons.
 
The University Center, which dates to 1954, began partially closing for good on Sunday to make way for demolition and the construction of Phase II of the much-larger Student Union.
 
Meanwhile, a bricked walkway has recently been constructed halfway up the Hill below Ayres Hall to make crossing that area of campus easier.
And the area around the Torchbearer statue and Circle Park will soon have a new look, too.
 
To mark the phased closing of the University Center, a special “Last Strike” event was held in the “Down Under” recreation center in the basement over the weekend. Students and members of the public had a last opportunity to enjoy free bowling and billiards.
 
The section of the building is now closed, and the entire building – which had an addition in 1967 -- will close to the public in late May. A historic display of the center has also been put up in connection with the closing.
 
Officials say a bowling alley will not be in the new Student Union due to declining use in recent years.
 
But the UC was generally a popular place for students over the years, and countless fans would gather in it before UT Vol football games. For years it had a cafeteria in the lower level where fans and students would eat a pre-game meal.
 
That site was later converted into a food court, but it remained popular for students during the week and for fans on football game days. Many would also visit the bookstore.
 
I can still remember the first time I walked in the University Center. It was in 1973, I think, when I was in the eighth grade and went up to a UT football game with my late Baylor School classmate, Ken Royal, and his family.
 
I remember we all ate heartily in the cafeteria, and then went over and watched Tennessee beat Texas Christian University. The Vols had an athletic freshman receiver named Stanley Morgan, who put on quite a show, I believe.
 
Phase 1 of the new Student Union just south of the old UC will open over the next few months, with the bookstore scheduled to begin operation in the summer.
 
On the Hill part of campus below Ayres Hall, workers in recent days have completed the landscaping work around the massive walkway that was built into the hillside.
 
Featuring a cement sidewalk and a brick-lined wall, the throughway is designed to make traversing the Hill easier for students and others with physical disabilities. Other people going back and forth from the east and west sides of the Hill should also find using the path easier, officials said.
 
However, as one alumnus pointed out, the walkway has ended what was a great sledding path during winter snowstorms on campus.
 
UT officials also recently announced that the area around the Torchbearer/Volunteer statue by Circle Park will be changed. The steps and retaining wall around it will be redesigned and rebuilt to allow even more people to gather comfortably in the area during football game days, officials say.
 
Since it is just up the hill from Neyland Stadium, crowds gather there before games to view the Vol Walk of players and coaches and the passing of the Pride of the Southland Marching Band.
 
The nice Circle Park area of trees and grass surrounding it will also be redone. Because of problems with grass getting trampled during game day events there, a blend of artificial grass and natural grass will be put on the lawn area to replace the regular grass.
 
Other landscaping updates, including the planting of some new trees, will also be made.
 
Circle Park will be closed and the Torchbearer’s flame will be extinguished for safety reasons while the work is being done this summer.
 
Regarding all these campus changes, as a traditionalist and historic preservationist, I hate to see the old University Center torn down. While I must admit that the new Phase 1 of the Student Union looks impressive, I still wish the old part could somehow be preserved, too.
 
But then again, I have seen few old buildings that I would recommend tearing down or replacing.
 
And while I was somewhat perplexed when I saw a giant trough being cut through the Hill beginning last fall next to some historic trees and below famed Ayers Hall, I must admit that the site looks quite nice now that has been finished and re-sodded.
 
But if I were one who still liked to sled down the Hill or had memories of sledding down the Hill as a student, I might be a little saddened by that part.
 
And as far as the nearly 50-year-old Torchbearer statue and Circle Park, I can understand redoing the plaza area to let even more people gather comfortably on a football game day.
 
But replacing the grass in Circle Park with an artificial blend seems a little drastic to me and takes away from what is one of the few naturally pretty places on the campus.
 
If they are worried about grass continually getting trampled and worn during special events, perhaps they can get some mats to put down and then take them up when they take up the tents.
 
Learning about that plan started me humming in my mind the old Joni Mitchell song with a new twist: “They paved paradise and put up some artificial grass.”
 
Regardless of the changes, a crowd will still be around Circle Park this fall to cheer on their beloved Tennessee Vols, who are hoping for their best football season in more than a decade.
 
Jcshearer2@comcast.net
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